Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1887-04-14

You viii notice the patience of the art
list who painted this plate The draw
ing of these birds and the blending OF
the colors could not have taken less
than years of patient toll"
While Mr.. Butler was talking he
leaned the plate against the globe of
his students lamp. so that we might
the better observe its beauty. After
discoursing for some time upon the
manufacture of early porcelains-a
subject in which he was deeply inter-
ested-he reached for the plate 20 ex-
anime it more carefully, but finding
that it had become unconfOrtably hot
from its contact with the lamp he LAID
it face downward on the table to cool.
It had rot been in that position many
seconds before we both noticed a change
in its appearance. The dingy brown
surface of the bottom of the plate had
become clearer and lighter in color,
but what astonished us far more was
the appearance of. certain indistinct
characters which were rapidly fading
away as the plate cooled. AS nearly
as we could judge from our hasty in
spection we thought these characters
bore some resemblance to japanese
letters. Something very singular
about this observed my friend.
VERY remarkable indeed. AS the
plate cools these letters, if letters they
be. seem to fade away. Suppose" he
added after short pause, suppose we
heat the plate again and sec if we can
learn what they really are"
One of Mr.. Buffers apartments is
deliberately fitted up as a chemical
laboratory. In corner of the room
there is small furnace. 1t was the
work of few minutes only to put some
charcoal into this and start fire. AS
soon as this was done, the plate. face
downwards, was carefully laid over
the top of this furnace and we leaned
over it anxiously awaiting the result.
In less than five minutes the brown
color had entirely disappeared and the
characters began to show themselves
rs before. AS the heat increased the
background on the plate grew clearer
until at length it was pure white.
Meanwhile the characters became more
and more distinct, until finally they
were indeed Japanese letters traced in
many lines of blue and circling the
plate like the signatures to ground
robin All the available space on the
plate was thus filled.
To say that 1 was amazed at this met
amorphosis would express my feelings
feebly. Butler, more calm, was pale
with excitement.
''Take a sheet of paper" said he;
''sit down at that desk and Twill trans
late this for you to write down. 1t is
in the classic OF written language of
the Japanese, and I can read it
readily"
sat down as was hidden, and he
proceeded to roughly translate from
this strangely discovered scroll, while
faithfully set down his words. This
is the story the plate told, precisely as
it was given to me that night and
copied verbatim from the notes 1 made,
which are now lying before me on my
desk:
am Tikipoto, the son of Iyeyasu,
once the chief man in the town of Saga,
and this history is written so that my
children and my great-grand-childre
may read and know of my great dis
covery. When my father reached the
middle age of life the great Hideyoshi
impressed him into service. He
soldiers to conquer great empire
across the sea. (This is evidently
mistake, for the writer must allude to
the invasion of China, which took place
in 1892. There were only 100, 900 SOL
diers in the Japanese army, according
to history-B. NJ He never came
back. My elder brother took my
parents place, and l was sent out into
the world to make my own living.
Think you that easy, my children? 1
may tell you it was not. 1 had had
my slaves and knew little about the
means of making money. 1 had spent
my life in studies and in my pottery.
was deep scholar in the art of MAX
ing earthen wares-nOt the crude and
purposeless articles which are now so
common, but something greater and
far more beautiful. When found my
self deprived of my fortune 1 turned to
my work with renewed interest. That
was my sole object in life. If my
studies should be successful / would
win both fame and wealth; if not,
could die. Who could do more? I had
pondered deeply over the mystery of
colors, their admixture and their prop
critics. In these studies had discov-
cred a new paint. That this discovery
will produce change in the art of
decorating earthenware there can be
no doubt, for by means of it 1 can re
produce at will the pictures of nature
without the use of the artists pencil
1 can place plate prepared with this
discovery before an object, and its